Author: Tom Wright
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UK retailers see rise in sales of reusable coffee cups
Home and kitchenware shops report growth in sales of portable mugs as government hints at a tax on disposable cups https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/jan/11/uk-retailers-see-rise-in-sales-of-reusable-coffee-cups
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Atmospheric CO2 Reaches Highest Level in Nearly a Million Years
According to the World Meteorological Organization, atmospheric CO2 levels have reached the highest level in 800,000 years – a gain that took just a few decades. The agency warns that urgent action is needed to reverse this worrying trend — and notes that we have the technology, but perhaps not the political will. This announcement is especially alarming, given that the Trump administration…
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Costs of 2017 US Weather Disasters Demolish Previous Record
2017 saw the US scorched by record-breaking wildfires in California, record-breaking rainfall events like Hurricane Harvey in Houston (just one of the three most expensive hurricanes to ever hit the US, which all occurred in 2017), damaging hail events, tornadoes, and extreme droughts that wiped out crops. These extreme weather events, most of which were…
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California is preparing to defend its waters from Trump order
In its first act to shield California from the Trump administration’s repeal of regulations, the state’s water board has prepared its own rulesprotecting wetlands and other waters. The proposed new rules, scheduled for a vote by the board this summer, could insulate the state from President Donald Trump’s executive order toroll back the reach of the Clean…
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Farming for a Small Planet
How we grow food determines who can eat and who cannot—no matter how much we produce. People yearn for alternatives to industrial agriculture, but they are worried. They see large-scale operations relying on corporate-supplied chemical inputs as the only high-productivity farming model. Another approach might be kinder to the environment and less risky for consumers,…
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New Report on Radioactive Tap Water Renews Concerns About Trump Nominee
New Report on Radioactive Tap Water Renews Concerns About Trump Nominee for Top Environmental Role Critics are challenging Trump’s “outrageous” and “alarming” move to renominate the former head of a Texas environmental agency who has admitted to falsifying reports of radiation levels in drinking water https://www.commondreams.org/news/2018/01/12/new-report-radioactive-tap-water-renews-concerns-about-trump-nominee-top AND http://www.truth-out.org/news/item/43195-embattled-trump-nominee-inadvertently-draws-attention-to-radiation-in-drinking-water
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Cheap renewables undercut nuclear power
Cheap renewables are mounting a serious challenge to nuclear power, which in 2017 has had a difficult year. Key projects have been abandoned, costs are rising, and politicians in countries which previously championed the industry are withdrawing their support. Renewables, on the other hand, especially wind and solar power, have continued to expand at an…
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GMOs, Global Agribusiness and the Destruction of Choice
One of the myths perpetuated by the pro-GMO (genetically modified organisms) lobby is that critics of GMOs in agriculture are denying choice to farmers and have an ideological agenda. The narrative is that farmers should have access to a range of tools and technologies, including GM crops. Before addressing this issue, we should remind ourselves…
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Creating a Sustainable Future: 5 Essential Reads
Much news about the environment in 2017 focused on controversies over Trumpadministration actions, such as proposals to promote more use of coal and budget cuts at relevant federal agencies. At the same time, however, many scholars across the U.S. are pursuing innovations that could help create a more sustainable world. Here we spotlight five examples from our 2017 archives. https://www.ecowatch.com/sustainability-innovations-2017-2520468655.html…